What leaves this device

Property exposure brief

The patio the neighbour's window sets on fire

The table cannot be answered for dinner outside yet.

Place Denver (demonstration)Reading The tableFor Dinner outsidePrepared 2026-10-30

Trust receipt

Record schema 7. Model 2026.09.3. Prepared 2026-10-30. This is a model of the geometry it was given, not a forecast and not a building assessment.

  • Observed 4

Why this result

The table cannot be answered for dinner outside yet.

What you told it, and what it assumed

You told it

  • The place is called “The patio the neighbour's window sets on fire”, in Denver (demonstration), America/Denver.
  • Lengths are shown in feet and inches.
  • 1 private note is on this device. They stay in a project file unless you leave them out.

It assumed

  • Nothing in the counted geometry is marked as placed by the model.
  • Every counted object has some standing. That is not the same as every standing being a tape.
What it calculated

Calculated

  • The table cannot be answered for dinner outside yet.

What would change the answer

  • A taped dimension where the plan still says estimated, placed, or unknown.
  • Running the same change through a month that is not this one. A July gain is not a year.

Smallest next check

  • The next useful check is the object whose standing is still unknown or estimated, measured at the place.
Where it stops, and which sources it used

Stops

  • A raised deck is a structure: footings, guarding above a certain height, and in many places a planning question about overlooking.
  • Permanent exterior circuits need code-compliant wiring.
  • Mature size, root behaviour near foundations and drains, and local suitability are questions for a nursery or arborist who can see the site.
  • Slip classification, falls to drainage and substrate are the paving specification, not a colour choice.
  • This is a decision instrument. It models sun, shade, sightlines, radiant heat and drying from the geometry it was given. It is not a structural, drainage, electrical or planning assessment, and it does not replace one.

Sources

  • NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory, Solar Calculation Details
  • ASHRAE Handbook of Fundamentals, Climatic Design Information, clear-sky solar model
  • Oke; Steyn, Boundary Layer Climates and the sky view factor method
  • ASHRAE Standard 55, Thermal Environmental Conditions for Human Occupancy
  • International Journal of Climatology, Thorsson and others, Different methods for estimating the mean radiant temperature in an outdoor urban setting
  • ASCE 7, Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures
  • DarkSky International, Five Principles for Responsible Outdoor Lighting
  • USDA Agricultural Research Service, Plant Hardiness Zone Map
  • US Environmental Protection Agency, Using Cool Pavements to Reduce Heat Islands
  • Proceedings of the Royal Society A, Penman, Natural evaporation from open water, bare soil and grass
  • ISO 9223, Corrosion of metals and alloys, corrosivity of atmospheres
  • ASTM and DIN 51130 ramp test, Slip resistance classification for pedestrian surfaces
  • ASTM C666, Resistance of concrete to rapid freezing and thawing
  • American Architectural Manufacturers Association, Voluntary specifications for high performance organic coatings on aluminium
  • Purdue University Horticulture, Faust and others, Daily light integral as a design metric for plant growth
Poured concrete patioThe evening skyThe house20 ftNeighbour's extension14 ft 5 inBoundary hedge6 ft 3 inThe table20° upN33 ft
BuildingNot yours (dashed edge)CanopyShadow nowCan see inProposed

To scale · to the measurements given: Drawn to scale from the measurements given. Not a survey. It is not a survey.

The property, as mapped

The patio the neighbour's window sets on fire at Denver (demonstration). 1 places are being read, against 3 things that stand in the way.

The house20 ft100 per cent solid. Confirmed.
Neighbour's extension14 ft 5 in100 per cent solid. Confirmed.
Boundary hedge6 ft 3 in70 per cent solid, seasonal. Confirmed.

How The table behaves in October

The table cannot be answered for dinner outside yet.

Nothing in October clears what dinner outside needs here.

Read for 30 October 2026, in America/Denver, northern hemisphere. This is the day the place is reading, not the fifteenth that stands in for the month, and not a forecast for that date.

The sun reaches this spot from 7:40 AM and leaves it at 3:20 PM. The table comes back into the sun at 7:27 AM, once the Boundary hedge is no longer in the way. The table loses the sun at 3:31 PM because of the Neighbour's extension.

When this was read30 October 2026America/Denver. Northern hemisphere.
Direct sun8 hoursof 10.3 hours of daylight
Sky visible from here76 per centThe house takes 80%, Neighbour's extension takes 20%
Usable light19.3 mol/m² a day

Whether it works for dinner outside

We cannot say yet whether The table works for dinner outside, because privacy exposure is still unanswered.

What it feels likeabout 50°F — 9°F under (at least 59°F)Nobody finishes a meal in a seat that is cooking.
View22 / 100 — 18 short (at least 40)Half the point of eating out here is what you are looking at.
NoteNot answered here. Privacy exposure: No observer has been placed yet. Privacy is a question about who can see in from where, and until one is marked there is nothing to answer. Noise: Nobody has told us what the noise is like here, and it is not something geometry can infer.

What to try, cheapest first

A second seat 19 ft 8 in south is the smallest change that moves this. A second seat 19 ft 8 in south fixes view.

A second seat 19 ft 8 in southTestYou can undo itNo extra hours this dayNo extra hours this day This hour: Unanswered → Unanswered. move it. Reversible. It does not meaningfully change the beam in either season. Summer solstice, 21 June: no usable hours then, with or without this change. Winter solstice, 21 December: no usable hours then, with or without this change. On this day: what it feels like is what keeps it shut, and air movement is the part that moves how it feels, with or without this change.
If it worked
view no longer stops the hour.
If it didn’t
If what it feels like still stops the hour after you try it, this was not the mechanism.
What would change this
Privacy exposure. No observer has been placed yet. Privacy is a question about who can see in from where, and until one is marked there is nothing to answer.
Move the table 8 ft 2 in south-eastTestYou can undo itNo extra hours this dayNo extra hours this day This hour: Unanswered → Unanswered. move it. Reversible. It does not meaningfully change the beam in either season. Summer solstice, 21 June: no usable hours then, with or without this change. Winter solstice, 21 December: no usable hours then, with or without this change. On this day: what it feels like is what keeps it shut, and air movement is the part that moves how it feels, with or without this change.
If it worked
The hour is easier, even if no single limit disappeared.
If it didn’t
If what it feels like still stops the hour after you try it, this was not the mechanism.
What would change this
Privacy exposure. No observer has been placed yet. Privacy is a question about who can see in from where, and until one is marked there is nothing to answer.
Raise the seating 2 ft 11 inCommitmentPermanentNo extra hours this dayNo extra hours this day This hour: Unanswered → Unanswered. a project. Not reversible. It does not meaningfully change the beam in either season. Summer solstice, 21 June: no usable hours then, with or without this change. Winter solstice, 21 December: no usable hours then, with or without this change. On this day: what it feels like is what keeps it shut, and air movement is the part that moves how it feels, with or without this change. On the winter solstice: what it feels like is what keeps it shut, and air movement is the part that moves how it feels. With this change, what it feels like is what keeps it shut, and how much sky is overhead is the part that moves how it feels.
If it worked
The hour is easier, even if no single limit disappeared.
If it didn’t
If what it feels like still stops the hour after you try it, this was not the mechanism.
What would change this
Privacy exposure. No observer has been placed yet. Privacy is a question about who can see in from where, and until one is marked there is nothing to answer.
Two low shielded lights instead of one high oneTestYou can undo itNo extra hours this dayNo extra hours this day This hour: Unanswered → Unanswered. an afternoon. Reversible. It does not meaningfully change the beam in either season. Summer solstice, 21 June: no usable hours then, with or without this change. Winter solstice, 21 December: no usable hours then, with or without this change. On this day: what it feels like is what keeps it shut, and air movement is the part that moves how it feels, with or without this change.
If it worked
The hour is easier, even if no single limit disappeared.
If it didn’t
If what it feels like still stops the hour after you try it, this was not the mechanism.
What would change this
Privacy exposure. No observer has been placed yet. Privacy is a question about who can see in from where, and until one is marked there is nothing to answer.
A deciduous tree 23 ft west of the seatCommitmentPermanentUnansweredThis hour: Unanswered → Unanswered. a project. Not reversible. It does not meaningfully change the beam in either season.
If it worked
The hour is easier, even if no single limit disappeared.
If it didn’t
If what it feels like still stops the hour after you try it, this was not the mechanism.
What would change this
Privacy exposure. No observer has been placed yet. Privacy is a question about who can see in from where, and until one is marked there is nothing to answer.
A paler pavingCommitmentPermanentUnansweredThis hour: Unanswered → Unanswered. a build. Not reversible. It does not meaningfully change the beam in either season.
If it worked
The hour is easier, even if no single limit disappeared.
If it didn’t
If what it feels like still stops the hour after you try it, this was not the mechanism.
What would change this
Privacy exposure. No observer has been placed yet. Privacy is a question about who can see in from where, and until one is marked there is nothing to answer.

What survives out here

Things stay wet here for 6 months of the year. That, and not rainfall, is what decides what survives. Natural rattan, jute and untreated rope is the family this place punishes hardest. Family behaviour is a starting point. The exact product still decides the outcome.

Stainless steelwell suitedThe surface here peaks near 121°F. Ask the supplier: Is it 304 or 316? Within a few miles of salt water that difference is the whole decision.
Tempered glasswell suitedAnything that stays damp grows something, whatever it is made of. Ask the supplier: What is the edge detail, and how will it be cleaned on the outside face?
Weathering steelwell suitedThe surface here peaks near 121°F. Ask the supplier: Is this a genuine weathering grade, and what does the datasheet say about wet-dry cycling and about run-off staining?
Exterior porcelain paverwell suitedThe surface here peaks near 121°F. Ask the supplier: What is the slip classification, wet, and how is it being laid: pedestals, sand or mortar?
Gravel and self-binding aggregatewell suitedAnything that stays damp grows something, whatever it is made of. Ask the supplier: What size and shape is the aggregate, and is there an edge to keep it where it belongs?
Powder-coated aluminiumworkableThis spot takes about 1.45 MJ per square metre a day of ultraviolet in its harshest month. Ask the supplier: Is the powder coat rated to AAMA 2604 or 2605, and is the substrate marine-grade?

What belongs here

About 39.5 moles of usable light a day with about 12 hours of direct sun in high summer. That is full sun, whatever the label on the plant says. Midwinter direct sun is about 8 hours, counted on its own day, not inferred from summer.

Of the groups in the reference set, moisture-loving marginal is the one that actually belongs in conditions like these. Anything planted here sits wet for 6 months of the year, so drainage is the decision before the plant is.

Moisture-loving marginalbelongs hereAbout 39.5 moles a day against an ideal of 24. There is no stated ceiling for this group, but that is a lot more light than it is built for. Examples, not recommendations: Astilbe; Ligularia; Iris sibirica.
Rain garden and swale plantingbelongs hereAbout 39.5 moles a day against an ideal of 26. There is no stated ceiling for this group, but that is a lot more light than it is built for. Examples, not recommendations: Iris in damp ground; Switchgrass; Joe Pye weed in North America.
Narrow upright evergreen screenwrong placeThis spot sits wetter than this group tolerates. Wet feet kill far more plants than cold does. About 39.5 moles a day against an ideal of 22. There is no stated ceiling for this group, but that is a lot more light than it is built for. Examples, not recommendations: Columnar hornbeam; Italian cypress in mild dry climates; Upright yew in cool climates.
Broad evergreen hedgewrong placeThis spot sits wetter than this group tolerates. Wet feet kill far more plants than cold does. About 39.5 moles a day against an ideal of 24. There is no stated ceiling for this group, but that is a lot more light than it is built for. Examples, not recommendations: Yew; Portuguese laurel; Holly.
Deciduous hedge that holds its leaveswrong placeThis spot sits wetter than this group tolerates. Wet feet kill far more plants than cold does. About 39.5 moles a day against an ideal of 26. There is no stated ceiling for this group, but that is a lot more light than it is built for. Examples, not recommendations: Beech; Hornbeam.
Medium deciduous shade treewrong placeThis spot sits wetter than this group tolerates. Wet feet kill far more plants than cold does. Examples, not recommendations: Field maple; Serviceberry; Hop hornbeam.

What to measure before spending anything

Ranked by how far the answer actually moves across the plausible range, not by a checklist.

Who can actually see insit thereSit where you actually sit and look around. Mark the one window or path you can see a person from. Until one exists, privacy is a question we are not answering rather than one that is fine. This is not a refinement. Nothing can answer this question until somebody marks it.

The year at a glance

Jan8 h sun13.7 mol light, would not dry within the day
Feb9 h sun19.6 mol light, would not dry within the day
Mar9 h sun26.5 mol light, would not dry within the day
Apr10 h sun33.5 mol light
May13 h sun39 mol light
Jun12 h sun46.2 mol light
Jul12 h sun44.7 mol light
Aug11 h sun40.3 mol light
Sep10 h sun34.2 mol light
Oct8 h sun23.4 mol light, would not dry within the day
Nov8 h sun15.6 mol light, would not dry within the day
Dec8 h sun12 mol light, would not dry within the day

Where this stops

  • A raised deck is a structure: footings, guarding above a certain height, and in many places a planning question about overlooking.
  • Permanent exterior circuits need code-compliant wiring.
  • Mature size, root behaviour near foundations and drains, and local suitability are questions for a nursery or arborist who can see the site.
  • Slip classification, falls to drainage and substrate are the paving specification, not a colour choice.
  • This is a decision instrument. It models sun, shade, sightlines, radiant heat and drying from the geometry it was given. It is not a structural, drainage, electrical or planning assessment, and it does not replace one.

Who to ask, and what to ask them

Everything this reading cannot answer goes to 7 places: a structural engineer, a drainage engineer, an electrician, your planning authority, an arborist, local planting advice and the manufacturer.

Inferred from the time zone America/Denver. A time zone identifies a country reasonably well and a county not at all, so nothing below is local to you.

A licensed professional engineer (PE), structural

Whether a wall, deck, post or fixing carries the thing you are proposing is a calculation about materials and connections. This product models sun, wind exposure and sightlines; it has never been told what the wall is made of or how the deck is framed.

Take these questions

  • Will this fixing or footing carry the load, in the wind this site actually gets?
  • What has to be opened up or exposed before that can be answered?
  • Is there a version of this that avoids a structural question altogether?

Take these with you

  • The contractor packet from this property, which has the dimensions and where each came from
  • Photographs of the wall or frame the thing would fix to
  • Anything you know about what is behind the surface

Where the register is

NCEES — licensure and verification — Licensing is by state; this points at the board that holds your state's register.

The 2 lines in this document that send you here
  • A raised deck is a structure: footings, guarding above a certain height, and in many places a planning question about overlooking.
  • This is a decision instrument. It models sun, shade, sightlines, radiant heat and drying from the geometry it was given. It is not a structural, drainage, electrical or planning assessment, and it does not replace one.

A drainage contractor or civil engineer

This product reads how long a surface stays wet from sun, shelter and shade. It does not know where the water goes afterwards, what the ground is made of below the top few inches, or what your drains are connected to.

Take these questions

  • Where is this water going now, and where would it go after the change?
  • Is there a connection or a soakaway involved, and is that something I am allowed to alter?
  • What would a percolation or infiltration test cost here before anybody designs anything?

Take these with you

  • The wetness reading and the months it is worst in
  • Where the downspouts land and where water stands after rain
  • Any drainage drawing that came with the property

Where the register is

USDA NRCS — Web Soil Survey — Free drainage class and infiltration context for your parcel, before you pay anybody.

The 3 lines in this document that send you here
  • Mature size, root behaviour near foundations and drains, and local suitability are questions for a nursery or arborist who can see the site.
  • Slip classification, falls to drainage and substrate are the paving specification, not a colour choice.
  • This is a decision instrument. It models sun, shade, sightlines, radiant heat and drying from the geometry it was given. It is not a structural, drainage, electrical or planning assessment, and it does not replace one.

A licensed electrician

Outdoor lighting and anything powered near water is a wiring question with a legal answer, and this product models the light rather than the circuit.

Take these questions

  • Is this circuit suitable for outdoors and for the distance involved?
  • What protection does this need, and does the work have to be certified or inspected?
  • Can the fixture be aimed or shielded the way I need without changing the wiring?

Take these with you

  • Where the fixtures would go and what they are pointed at
  • The distance from the nearest existing supply

Where the register is

Your state or county building department — Permitting and licence checks are local; the state consumer office lists who holds them.

The 2 lines in this document that send you here
  • Permanent exterior circuits need code-compliant wiring.
  • This is a decision instrument. It models sun, shade, sightlines, radiant heat and drying from the geometry it was given. It is not a structural, drainage, electrical or planning assessment, and it does not replace one.

Your city or county planning and building department

Whether you are allowed to build a thing is decided by a local rule set that varies street by street. This product has no idea which rules apply to your address, and anything it said about consent would be a guess dressed as an answer.

Take these questions

  • Does this need consent at this height, this footprint and this distance from the boundary?
  • Is there anything specific to this property — a conservation designation, a covenant, an easement, an HOA rule?
  • If it does not need consent, is there anything that would make it need one?

Take these with you

  • The dimensions and the position relative to the boundary, which the contractor packet already states
  • A site plan showing where it sits
  • The property address, which is what everything above is actually keyed to

Where the register is

USA.gov — find your local government — Permits and setbacks are city or county; this finds the office that issues them.

The 2 lines in this document that send you here
  • A raised deck is a structure: footings, guarding above a certain height, and in many places a planning question about overlooking.
  • This is a decision instrument. It models sun, shade, sightlines, radiant heat and drying from the geometry it was given. It is not a structural, drainage, electrical or planning assessment, and it does not replace one.

A certified arborist

This product models a canopy as a shape that blocks light. Whether a tree is safe, whether it will survive what you are proposing, and whether you are permitted to touch it are three separate questions it cannot answer.

Take these questions

  • Is this tree safe as it stands, and does the answer change if I build near it?
  • What will this do to the root zone, and how far out does that reach?
  • Is this tree protected, and by what?

Take these with you

  • The canopy dimensions this product is using and where they came from
  • Photographs of the whole tree, including the base
  • What you are proposing to build and how close

Where the register is

ISA — find an arborist — The certification register, including the tree-risk qualification.

The line in this document that sends you here
  • Mature size, root behaviour near foundations and drains, and local suitability are questions for a nursery or arborist who can see the site.

Your county Cooperative Extension office

This product names the kind of plant a place suits — the light, the moisture, the exposure it has to survive — and stops short of naming a species, because which species does that job well is a regional answer and a wrong one costs a season.

Take these questions

  • What grows here that wants this much light and this much water?
  • Which of those is a problem locally — invasive, disease-prone, or wrong for this soil?
  • What is the honest mature size, rather than the label size?

Take these with you

  • The light and moisture reading for the bed, which is the part most advice has to guess at
  • Your hardiness zone if it is known, and the coldest temperature the place actually reaches
  • A photograph of the bed at the hour it gets its light

Where the register is

USDA — find your Cooperative Extension office — Free, local, and the single most under-used resource in American gardening.

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map — Your zone, from your postcode.

The line in this document that sends you here
  • Mature size, root behaviour near foundations and drains, and local suitability are questions for a nursery or arborist who can see the site.

The manufacturer or an approved installer

Wind ratings, fixing patterns and warranty conditions belong to whoever made the thing. This product can say what a change would do to the reading; it cannot say what voids the guarantee.

Take these questions

  • What is the wind rating, and in what mounting?
  • What does the warranty require of the installation and the maintenance?
  • What is the actual lead time and what does it look like in five years?

Take these with you

  • The exposure this product measured, including the windiest month
  • The fixing surface you actually have

No register is named here, because this router does not know which country holds one for you. The questions above are the same wherever you are.

The line in this document that sends you here
  • Slip classification, falls to drainage and substrate are the paving specification, not a colour choice.

Nothing here says what the answer will be. These are registers rather than recommendations, and a name on one is a qualification rather than an endorsement.

What this was built on

The property record itself can be exported as a file and carried to another device. Nothing about this property has left your device unless you chose to send it somewhere.

Back to the place